The Art of Thinking Quietly
by Comedy Kitty
Summary: After the events from last season, Mohinder finds himself taking care of Matt Parkman. Eventual MohinderMatt, Spoilers for Season 1, Vague for Season 2
1. Chapter 1

(Authors Note: So this has been in my head since I finished the series, and I'm finally getting it out now. Its my first venture into Heroes fic, so be kind. :) There will be at least another 2 parts, maybe a third. And I SWEAR I wrote this like a week ago. I wanted to post it before the season premiere, so my illusions didn't get shattered, but who knew!! But manymany thanks to my lovely beta, yaiyah! But anyway, on with it!)

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The whole situation was utterly ridiculous when Mohinder looked back at it. He wasn't even completely certain how he had gotten to this point. He was sure whose fault this all was, and that fell upon the small shoulders of Molly Walker. She was the one who put him on the worst guilt trip of his life that ultimately ended with him taking care of her other hero, a man he hardly knew, Matt Parkman.

It had all started on that night at Kirby Plaza, as he and Molly tried to escape Sylar. A night he remembered too vividly. He trusted the other family they had met on the way out, Niki, D.L. and Micah, all extremely gifted, trying to escape as well. Mohinder knew that even though Niki had only just met Molly, she'd protect the girl with her life.

As soon as they got outside, he heard Matt Parkman moan in pain not to far away. He couldn't leave Parkman alone, not when there was blood beginning to pool around him, and he knew Molly would be safe with Niki, so he rushed over to him. It didn't matter that he wasn't a real doctor, nor did he have any sort of powers to make any sort of difference, but he couldn't just leave the man to die alone. Somehow he had been shot at least four times and was barely conscious. He immediately put pressure on of the bullet wounds, hoping to staunch the bleeding, if only a little. He looked over the other man and it seemed Matt was overwhelmed by pain. "Officer Parkman? I need to you concentrate on my voice," Mohinder said as loud as he dared.

Matt shuddered, his eyes remaining unfocused. "Everything is too loud," he managed to get out, despite his labored breath. It took a moment for Mohinder to realize he was reading everyone's thoughts around them. "Sylar… he's so angry…" He couldn't begin to imagine how awful this must be for Matt, hearing Sylar's thoughts, of all people. "Almost worst than getting shot…" He would've laughed at the ill-timed joke, but he had a feeling that Matt was actually quite serious.

"Officer Parkman, you need to stay with me. Focus." Matt nodded vaguely, but it was obvious that he was still unable to block the outside noise. Mohinder was at a loss for a moment. He had no idea how to even begin to help. He barely understood how Matt's telepathy worked, let alone tell him how to block out thoughts while he was bleeding to death. He had a theory that would hopefully work well enough until a real doctor arrived. "Matt, listen to me. Just concentrate on my thoughts and nothing else. Can you do that for me?" Mohinder did his best to clear his mind of any fear for Matt's health, and simply thought of Molly. He thought Matt would like that Molly was safe and probably made a new friend.

Matt looked at Mohinder, smiling slightly. His theory seemed to have worked well enough, as some of the pain etched into Matt's face had faded. "You think quietly," he murmured, making eye contact briefly. There was something behind his eyes, something Mohinder couldn't quite place, but something that made his breath catch in his throat. "Thank you." Moments later, Matt slipped into unconsciousness, looking fairly peaceful for a man who's been shot four times and nearly had his mind metaphorically ripped in half by a crazy man trying to blow up the city.

He kept pressure on Matt's chest and looked around to see Peter Petrelli, who somehow miraculously had risen from the dead, begin to glow. Mohinder realized he had been so focused on Matt's safety he had no idea what was going on around him. Peter was struggling with himself, Sylar seemed to be dead, but Mohinder knew not to make any sort of assumptions when it came to him. There was also a blonde girl, crying, who seemed too young to have to point a gun at anyone, much less Peter. Then, Nathan Petrelli flew from out of nowhere, and stood between the girl and Peter. The scientist in his brain was making note of all these abilities, marveling at them all, but it was silenced as Nathan wrapped his arms around Peter and flew into the night.

After what seemed like a lifetime later, a bright horrible blast lit the sky, and Mohinder felt tears spring to his eyes. He looked down at Matt, and wished for a moment he was awake to see this, to see that he had helped save the world. And even though he knew Matt wouldn't be able to hear his thoughts, only one thought ran through his mind, loud and clear. _Survive. Survive so you can see the world you helped save…_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Don't own Heroes. I wish I did, but sadly I do not. :( Reviews are love!!

It felt like an eternity before Matt was stabilized, and even then the doctors couldn't guarantee that he would pull through. It was a tense week and a half before he finally woke. A week and a half of constant vigilance on Mohinder's part. No one asked why he was constantly nearby, though he had his reasons ready for any questioning. It wasn't that he was friends with the man, he barely knew him. He was there for Molly's sake, who insisted that he stayed near Matt when she couldn't and for the sake of science of course. He should be near the man if he wanted to study him. But he certainly wasn't staying near him because he had a bizarre connection with him. That would be ridiculous.

Parkman had other visitors. A blonde woman from the FBI, who actually seemed _angry_ at Parkman for being shot. When Mohinder attempted to talk to her, she sharply told him that she had called Parkman's wife, who was on her way from LA, and that she would only need a minute. He took that as a subtle way of saying 'shut up and go away,' so he wisely left her alone. She left shortly after that, not even giving Mohinder a second glance. Nice girl.

Bennet visited twice. The first time was when Parkman was finally stabilized. He stood at Parkman's bed for a few minutes, studying him with a completely emotionless face. Then he turned to Mohinder with a tight, yet still smug smile and said, "Don't worry Suresh, Parkman is the most stubborn man I've ever met." Then he left without another word. He didn't return again until days later, this time with the blonde Mohinder had seen at Kirby Plaza. He finally learned that this was Claire, the adopted daughter Bennet nearly killed Molly for. They were there to say their goodbyes for now, ready to find their family and continue to survive. Bennet shook his hand, told him to take care of Molly, and assured him that they'd be in contact again very soon. As they left, Bennet hesitated at the door before turning back and saying "Be sure to watch him when he wakes up." For a moment, Mohinder was certain he heard concern coloring Bennet's voice. Before he could figure out what it was, or question the cryptic advice, Bennet was gone.

Mohinder met Matt's wife – Janice – next and she liked him as much as the blonde did. He carefully explained what had happened at the Plaza, unable to keep the pride from his voice as he let her know Matt was one of the heroes that night. She hadn't said much in reply, but by her expression alone, strangely enough concern mixed with a bit of anger, gave him an idea of her personality. He gave her his number, asking her to call him when Matt woke and left her alone with her husband. At least now he could find tea, give Molly updates on her hero and catch up on his sleep. In that order.

Somehow that plan turned into Mohinder falling asleep in the lobby for a few hours, only waking up when his phone went off. It was Janice, calling to tell him that Matt had woken up and there was something wrong. Panic immediately hit him like a blast of cold water, and he immediately rushed of to Matt's room. By the time Mohinder arrived, he was unconscious again, and Janice was pacing the halls. When he asked what had happened, her answers were short and terse. The gist of it was Matt was awake for barely 10 minutes, muttered incoherently, hyperventilated and passed out again. Mohinder gaped as she continued pacing. What would cause Matt to panic so badly in a hospital completely baffled him. The doctors were just as confused as they were and told them both to stay close, and to alert them if it happens again.

So, whether the wife liked it or not, Mohinder stuck around in case Matt woke any time soon. Although, even if he did, there was little a geneticist could do to help, yet something kept him near. Perhaps it was Bennet's vague warning ringing in his ears, a puzzle begging to be solved, with no means to even begin to understand it. He was in the dark here, practically alone in a hospital room, there was nothing to research, nothing to solve. All he had was a notebook, and nothing productive came from that so far. He was overwhelmed by suddenly feeling so frustrated and concerned. He felt almost claustrophobic. So he sat in the corner of Matt's room, as far from the bed as he could be, lost in his thoughts and tried to give Mrs. Parkman some privacy with her husband.

At some point, he gave up on the notebook and turned his gaze to Matt. For some reason, he thought staring at the other man would answer all his questions. Somehow his mind drifted horribly off topic as he noticed how peaceful Matt looked as he slept. He almost looked like someone entirely different without that bright smile. True, he had only seen that smile once, and it wasn't even directed towards him, but it was something he couldn't forget easily. _Fantastic, you've completely lost your mind, _he thought to himself with a sigh.

And of course, this was the moment Matt Parkman chose to wake up again, instantly catching Mohinder's eyes. He looked surprisingly calm, considering the events from earlier. He even gave Mohinder a shaky, yet amused smile, a smaller version of the smile he had been thinking of moments ago. Heat rushed to his cheeks as he realized he'd been caught staring, and worse yet, Matt probably heard his thoughts. After a few minutes of a slightly awkward staring contest between them both, Mohinder decided he should leave for a bit, half to give Janice time with her husband, half to regroup his own thoughts and shake off his ridiculous embarrassment. "Will you be back soon?" Matt croaked out, sounding truly exhausted, now alerting Janice that he was awake. It took a moment for Mohinder to realize he was addressing his thoughts, and gave him a quick nod and smile in response. He left them to take a walk around the hospital, maybe he'd find some decent tea, and then he'd return. That should give them enough time to talk and for him to sort out his own thoughts. He didn't want to rush them, but he desperately needed to ask Matt questions about his ability.

A little over an hour later, Mohinder returned with two cups of tea. He figured he'd get one for Janice as a peace offering. Strangely enough, she was gone. Matt was awake, staring at the wall with red rimed eyes. He didn't even acknowledge that Mohinder had entered the room. He hovered near the door, debating on leaving the man alone and just coming back later. Matt obviously picked up on this and finally spoke. "You can stay if you want to, but I'm not in a talking mood," he said, his voice thick with emotions.

Mohinder just nodded, understanding, and sat in the chair next to the bed. "Alright. In that case, I bring tea, which is often best when drank in silence," he replied, handing Matt the cup.

Mohinder couldn't help but wonder what had happened while he was out. "She left," was the answer to unasked question. Mohinder couldn't hide his surprise. "She…she never said what she thought. And I…" Matt trailed off, his jaw clenching. Mohinder leaned forward, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"We can talk tomorrow. Or the next day, or never, if you'd like. But now you should sleep. Tomorrow I'm bringing an energetic girl who's been dying to see you and you'll need as much sleep as you can get." Matt met his gaze, his eyes shining with gratitude, just nodding and leaning back into the bed. Nothing more was said, but there wasn't really a need to.

Mohinder waited until he was sure Matt was asleep before he left.


	3. Chapter 3

((Notes: I do not own Heroes! If I did, Mohinder would've done more than just look lustfully at Matt in the last episode… Also, sorry this one took to long to get up! I've been busying getting ready to move back to NYC. I'm not sure when the last chapter will be up, but hopefully soon! Comments are love!! Many thanks in advance :) ))

"Now Molly," Mohinder said quietly, crouched down to eye level with the little girl outside Matt's room. "Officer Parkman has been through a lot and isn't completely better yet, so you'll have to be careful, alright?"

She rolled her eyes, sighing overdramatically. "I know Mohinder, I'm not going to hurt him." She gave him a knowing look, flashing one of her brilliant smiles. "I think you're the one that needs to relax!"

"I need to relax? I'm not the one who's going to rush in there screaming, and give the poor man a headache!" He teased back, trying hard to keep a stern face.

"I am not! Can we go in now please?"

Mohinder finally broke and smiled, raising his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright, let's go see him." He opened the door, and as he knew she would, she rushed in, shouting in excitement. He sighed, dropping his head for a moment. "I already have no authority," he mumbled before joining them.

"Officer Parkman!" she shrieked, throwing herself on his bed. Matt groaned, but kept grinning, hugging the girl close. Mohinder watched them, and even though Molly was pressing herself against Matt's barely healed chest, he couldn't imagine a more perfect moment. "Did you miss me?"

"Of course I did! And please call me Matt, alright?"

"Molly, get off Matthew," Mohinder scolded as he entered. Someone needed to be the voice of reason between these two.

Instantly, Molly remembered why he was in the hospital and gasped, tears welling up in her eyes. He cursed inwardly at himself, forgetting that due to traumatic events, she tended to get upset very quickly. "I'm fine Molly, you didn't hurt me," Matt assured her with a smile. "But it would be a better idea to sit at the edge of the bed." She lit up again, and Mohinder gave Matt a grateful glance, sitting in his usual seat in the corner of the room to let them catch up. "So what did I miss?" And that question opened the floodgates.

Molly was talking a mile a minute, informing Matt of every minute that he had missed out on while he was recovering. To his credit, he was doing an admirable job of keeping up with her. Mohinder was barely listening to her, but was more focused on Matt at the moment. He was smiling, yes, but he was also very pale, and though he tried to hide it, there was a slight tremor to his hands. It was then Mohinder's brain finally turned on and he realized what he had been missing this whole time. "Molly? Could you do me a favor and get some food for Officer Parkman? No junk food." He needed to talk to Matt immediately, without Molly in the room. She nodded eagerly and bounced off, thankfully shutting the door on her way out. Mohinder moved over to the chair next to the bed, wondering how to bring this up. Luckily he was with a telepath, so he didn't even have to voice his concern.

"Its really not that bad," Matt argued.

"I can't believe I didn't realize it before. You're a telepath, and we are in New York City. The sheer amount of people constantly around, the amount of thoughts, I can't imagine how that must sound."

"Its more of a constant buzz in the back of my mind. Only here its much louder and it just makes it a little harder to concentrate." Mohinder gave him a pointed look. "Alright, it's a little overwhelming, but I have to learn to deal with it."

"Matthew, you look awful. You're hardly able to deal with this on your own, but I think I may be able to help. Just tell me what you can about it. What happened when you first arrived in New York?"

Matt let out a dry chuckle. "I passed out. About five minutes into getting to the city, it was too loud and I just passed out. When I came to, Bennet told me to just focus on his thoughts until we left the city. Oh, and he and Ted made fun of me for the rest of the time." Mohinder nodded, now understanding why Bennet had warned him before he left. Matt looked at him in complete surprise. "He warned you about this?" He sounded shocked and a little touched that the man would actually care.

Mohinder smirked. "Yes, but he made it as cryptic and vague as he could." Matt chuckled, rubbing his forehead. "What sort of side affects are you experiencing?"

"Headaches. Well, actually migraines. The kind that are so bad you can hardly see straight and you feel sick. But some days they aren't so bad. Today is ok." This caused Mohinder to instantly frown.

"Matthew, you can hardly stop your hand from shaking, and you call that ok?" Matt shrugged helplessly. "What else can you tell me about it?"

"I can't really turn it on or off, or control it at all really. So chances are if I'm near someone and they're thinking, I can hear it all, which can be a bit of a curse." Judging by the sudden distant look in his eyes, Mohinder guessed he had heard thoughts not meant to be heard with his ability. "And while we're on the topic, I'm sorry for reading your mind this whole time. I don't mean to eavesdrop," he apologized with a sheepish grin.

"There is no need to apologize, I don't expect you to be able to control what you hardly understand. Besides, I think I may be able to help you. If I can study your ability, I can learn how it works, and hopefully we can learn how to filter the background noise out, and even control when you want to listen."

Matt grinned widely, the first true smile Mohinder had seen since he'd awaken. He found that it was infectious, returning it happily. "If you could, I'd be forever in your debt, Dr. Suresh. I was thinking about trying to find a place in the city, and now I have more of a reason to." His smile faltered for a moment. "There's nothing left for me in LA."

Mohinder put his hand on Matt's arm, ignoring the unfamiliar feeling in the pit of his stomach. "New York is the perfect place for new beginnings, my friend, and I'd say there is plenty here for you." Matt nodded slightly, looking away from him for the moment. "I must admit, I'm a little worried about the idea of you living alone at the moment, dealing with these side affects on your own. Not to mention you've just been shot four times." He hesitated for a moment, unsure why he suddenly felt so nervous. "There's plenty of room at my father's apartment. You are more than welcome to stay with me until you get back on your feet." Matt frowned at him with a look that was a cross between gratitude, shock and disdain, and for a moment Mohinder wished he knew what the telepath was thinking.

"Dr. Suresh, that really isn't necessary. I'm sure that I will be fine on my own, and I don't need pity," he protested, his male pride obviously overtaking logic.

"Matthew, I sincerely want to help you. I know we hardly know each other, but I promise you that pity has nothing to do with it. You won't be imposing or a burden," he assured, making sure to look Matt straight in his eyes. "In fact, you'd be more than welcome. I'm sure I will need plenty of help raising a certain little girl."

Before Matt could argue again, an excited voice by the door interrupted them. "Officer Parkman is going to move in with us?!" Molly beamed, rushing over with a tray of questionable hospital food in her hands. She put the tray down before hopping onto Mohinder's lap, still looking at Matt with wide eyes. "Are you?"

"Yes, Matthew, are you?" Mohinder couldn't resist smirking at the other man over Molly's head, only receiving a glare in response. Admittedly, it was a dirty trick to use the little girl as bait. _Molly truly does want you to live with us,_ he thought, keeping eye contact. _And so do I._

Matt's scowl softened considerably before finally breaking into a grin. "I guess I am," he said, his eyes never leaving Mohinder's. Molly shrieked with excitement, and even Mohinder couldn't keep from smiling.

He held his hand out to Matt. "Since we'll be roommates now, I insist you call me Mohinder. I'm not your doctor, Matthew."

Matt laughed, taking his hand firmly and shaking it. "Fair enough." He couldn't help but notice the other man looked worlds better now. He still looked exhausted and much paler than normal, but he didn't look like the weight of the world was crushing him. He looked happy. Mohinder turned his gaze to Molly, who was apparently mapping out their living arrangements in great detail.

"But it's really big for an apartment in New York!" Mohinder chucked, shaking his head. He knew the apartment was hardly big enough for two grown men and a young girl, but they would manage. "I already have my room set up, but there's another room that you and Mohinder can sleep in!" Mohinder's eyes widened, and immediately tried to hide his face, praying he wasn't blushing. Matt on the other hand burst out laughing, clearly amused by either from Mohinder's embarrassment or Molly's arrangements.

After his laughter died down, Matt grinned at Molly. "I think that's moving a bit too fast," he joked, taking the opportunity to wink at Mohinder. Heat rushed to his cheeks again, and he found himself praying that Kali would be merciful and just take him now. "I'm sure I'll be fine on the couch, right Mohinder?"

"Absolutely not. I will be taking the couch, and you will take my room for the time being." Matt gave him an incredulous look. "I'm sure sleeping on a couch that may as well be a rock is a perfectly acceptable way to recover from four gunshot wounds," he said calmly, not attempted to hide his smirk.

Matt attempted to give him a look of mock outrage, even though his eyes sparkled with mischief. "Well then I'm not going to be happy about!" That was when Molly burst into giggles, and soon all three were laughing. Mohinder looked at them both, feeling almost overwhelmed by the unfamiliar sensations of being truly happy and feeling completely safe with them both. Like he had no reason to ever be alone again. It was daunting really, but he decided that he wanted it to last as long as it could. Molly climbed back onto Matt's bed, this time mindful of his chest, and the two were acting like children again. Mohinder watched them, unable to wipe the grin from his face. Shaking his head, he thought to himself, _a geneticist, a girl who can find people by a mere thought and a telepath moving in together. Dysfunctional hardly begins to describe it._ Matt looked right into Mohinder's eyes, and gave him a shy smile. "Personally, I wouldn't have it any other way."

Mohinder suddenly felt lighter than he ever thought was possible. Perhaps this was what infinite joy felt like? Keeping his eyes locked with Matt's, he thought happily, _neither would I._


End file.
